Sri Lanka has been admitted to the Foundation Council, the Governing Body of the Geneva Center for Security Policy (GCSP). Sri Lanka’s Permanent Representative to the United Nations in Geneva Ambassador Ravinatha Aryasinha represented Sri Lanka for the first...

Consideration of the Fifth Periodic Report of Sri Lanka under the Committee Against Torture (CAT) took place at the 59th Session of the Committee Against Torture, held at the Palais Wilson in Geneva, on 15-16 November 2016. Hon. Jayantha...

Statement by Hon. Mangala Samaraweera, MP Minister of Foreign Affairs of Sri Lanka High Level Segment of the 22ndSession of the Conference of Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP22)
and 12th Session of the...

“Tobacco & alcohol control at top of my national agenda”
President Maithripala Sirisena urged the world community to resist the attempts of the tobacco industry to undermine tobacco control through litigation and interference in government policy-making.
“We know that...

Our development strategy is to trade successfully with the vibrant market in the Indian Ocean. In this venture, we intend to create a law-abiding economic environment in order to provide a platform for sustainable development. In the present context,...

Foreign Minister Mangala Samaraweera called for the Indian Ocean Rim Association (IORA) to move into a new era of dynamism, when he addressed the 16th Council of Ministers Meeting (CoMM) of IORA held on 27th October 2016 in Bali, Indonesia. In his address,...

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Sri Lanka's Permanent Representative to the UN in Geneva Ambassador Ravinatha Aryasinha has said, in implementing the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), the Global South must continue to reflect on 'how' development is done, not just 'what' is done.

He made this observation, when in his capacity as and Chairman of the Personal Representatives of G-15 , together with Executive Director of the South Centre Dr. Martin Khor, he initiated a joint consultation by the South Centre and the Group of Fifteen (G-15) on 'The state of play of the Post-2015 Development Agenda and potential opportunities for the Global South'.

Ambassador Aryasinha emphasized that developing countries must remain engaged even more actively in this final phase of the finalizing the Post-2015 Development Agenda, to prevent it from being imposed on them as a fait accompli. He said, the G-15 believes all countries must adhere to the criteria agreed upon in Rio+20, namely that the operationalization of the SDGs must be based on the principle of ‘common but differentiated responsibility’, and should not place additional restrictions or burdens on Developing countries. He also stressed that true development requires a genuine global partnership and called on developed countries to honour their international commitments, especially those related to financial resources, technology transfer and capacity. Ambassador Aryasinha said the consultation would help both the G-15 and the South Centre to consider various options on the way forward and to prepare possible actionable recommendations to improve the Post-2015 Development Agenda process, which could be shared with G-15 capitals, as well as with like-minded countries who will be negotiating the Post-2015 Development Agenda.

Dr. Khor detailed the state of play of the Development Agenda at the New York level. He said although there was much focus on New York, the 'real development agenda' was being negotiated in Geneva - within UNCTAD, WTO, WHO, ILO, WIPO and other institutions, given that the agreements they negotiate are legally enforced. Dr. Khor said South-South cooperation is becoming even more important today, and called on the G-15 to “reclaim its initial central role” by providing a non-UN platform where South-South dialogue can expand. He recalled that the G-15 was historically created as a counter Group to the G-7 to protest the unilateral decisions taken by developed countries and imposed on the rest of the globe. He said as the Development Agenda is being negotiated, the G-15 should play a leading role. However, Dr. Khor stressed that North-South cooperation must continue, as Western countries bore a postcolonial responsibility to developing countries.

Dr. Mariama Williams, Senior Programme Officer, Global Governance for Development Programme; Dr. Montes Manuel, Senior Advisor, Finance and Development; and Mr. Vicente Paolo B. Yu III, Head of Administration and Coordinator, Global Governance for Development Programme delivered presentations on the topic. Ambassador Amr Ahmed Ramadan, Permanent Representative of Egypt to the UN in Geneva and delegates from other G-15 countries participated in the discussion.